Economists are from Mars, Electric Vehicles s are from Venus: Limits and Costs of Full Electrification
- Speaker: Prof. Jim Bushnell from UC Davis
- Title: "Economists are from Mars, Electric Vehicles are from Venus: Limits and Costs of Full Electrification"
- Time / Date: 11:00 am - 12:30 pm, Wednesday, April 24th
- Venue: The Pavilion on Level 8, Building H, Caulfield Campus, Monash University
- Please Note: In-person event (no zoom option) & for Monash staff and students only
Electrification is a centrepiece of global decarbonization efforts. Yet there are reasons to question the inevitability, or at least the optimal pace, of this transition. We discuss several under-appreciated costs of full, or even deep, electrification. Consumer preferences can operate in favour of and in opposition to electrification goals; and electrification is likely to encounter physical and economic obstacles when it reaches some as-yet-unknown level. While we readily acknowledge the external benefits of decarbonization, we also explore several under-appreciated external costs. The credibility and eventual success of decarbonization efforts is enhanced by foreseeing and ideally avoiding predictable but non-obvious costs of promising abatement pathways. Thus, even with all of its promise, the degree of electrification may ultimately reach a limit.
Event Details
- Date:
- 24 April 2024 at 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Description
- Speaker: Prof. Jim Bushnell from UC Davis
- Title: "Economists are from Mars, Electric Vehicles are from Venus: Limits and Costs of Full Electrification"
- Time / Date: 11:00 am - 12:30 pm, Wednesday, April 24th
- Venue: The Pavilion on Level 8, Building H, Caulfield Campus, Monash University
- Please Note: In-person event (no zoom option) & for Monash staff and students only
Electrification is a centrepiece of global decarbonization efforts. Yet there are reasons to question the inevitability, or at least the optimal pace, of this transition. We discuss several under-appreciated costs of full, or even deep, electrification. Consumer preferences can operate in favour of and in opposition to electrification goals; and electrification is likely to encounter physical and economic obstacles when it reaches some as-yet-unknown level. While we readily acknowledge the external benefits of decarbonization, we also explore several under-appreciated external costs. The credibility and eventual success of decarbonization efforts is enhanced by foreseeing and ideally avoiding predictable but non-obvious costs of promising abatement pathways. Thus, even with all of its promise, the degree of electrification may ultimately reach a limit.